Venice Film Festival opened
Baku, September 1 (AZERTAC). George Clooney`s "The Ides of March" opened a star-studded Venice Film Festival on Wednesday at the Palazzo del Cinema. Fans will see two other Hollywood actor/directors, Madonna and Al Pacino, premiering their latest directorial efforts.
Clooney`s political drama is among 23 films - five from Hollywood - vying for the coveted Golden Lion, which will be awarded September 10.
The jury will be headed by American director Darren Aronofsky, a two-time Golden Lion winner whose "Black Swan" was launched to huge Oscar success after opening in Venice last year.
In all, 66 films will make their world premiere at the 68th edition of the world`s oldest festival. It is the first time since World War II that all feature films in the festival`s three official events - in competition, out of competition and the “Horizons” avant-garde section - are world premieres.
Nearly half of the festival`s lineup is high-powered English-language films, a sign of its growing prestige in the eight years that it has been directed by Marco Mueller.
One of the most highly-anticipated events at Venice this year is Madonna`s second feature film, the U.K. production “W.E.” The movie, which premieres out of competition Thursday, intercuts between the romance of a modern woman (Abbie Cornish) and the relationship of American socialite Wallis Simpson and Britain`s King Edward VIII, who abdicated the throne for love in the 1930s.
Pacino has an out-of-competition biopic, “Wilde Salome,” one of seven American movies being show at side events. Featuring Chastain, “Wilde Salome” is an exploration of Oscar Wilde`s work that combines documentary and film, much like Pacino did in his previous “Looking for Richard.”
The Venice Film Festival is the oldest film festival in the world. Founded by Count Giuseppe Volpi in 1932 as the “Esposizione Internazionale d`Arte Cinematografica”, the festival has since taken place every year in late August or early September on the island of the Lido, Venice, Italy. Screenings take place in the historic Palazzo del Cinema on the Lungomare Marconi.
It is one of the world`s most prestigious film festivals and is part of the Venice Biennale, a major biennial exhibition and festival for contemporary art.
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